The present invention relates to a motion magnifying seismic shock-absorbing construction for use in buildings which are extremely rigid.
By way of background, in buildings which are extremely stiff, such as massive concrete buildings, the relative horizontal movements of floors in response to seismic shock are not sufficiently large so as to permit toggle linkages, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,870,863, to transmit sufficient movement to dampers which absorb the seismic shock. It is with an improvement to seismic linkages of the foregoing type for use in such extremely stiff buildings that the present invention is concerned.
It is the object of the present invention to provide motion-magnifying seismic shock-absorbing construction for magnifying the distance resulting from the relative movement of floors of an extremely stiff building resulting from seismic shock so that such magnified movement can be transmitted to seismic dampers for absorbing the shock causing such relative movement.
Another object of the present invention is to provide an improved stiff building structure containing a plurality of motion-magnifying seismic shock-absorbing linkages for magnifying the distance resulting from the relative movement of the floors of an extremely stiff building resulting from seismic shock so that such magnified movement can be transmitted to seismic dampers for absorbing the shock causing such relative movement. Other objects and attendant advantages of the present invention will readily be perceived hereafter.
The present invention relates to a motion-magnifying seismic shock-absorbing construction for placement in the frame of a building comprising a first link including a shock-absorbing member, a second link, and a motion-magnifying linkage connecting said first and second links.
The present invention also relates to a building structure having a frame and floors which move horizontally relative to each other in response to a seismic event, the improvement of a plurality of motion-magnifying shock-absorbing constructions each comprising a first link including a shock-absorbing member therein attached to said frame, a second link attached to said frame, and a motion-magnifying linkage attached between said first and second links.
The various aspects of the present invention will be more fully understood when the following portions of the specification are read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein: